Amazon Key Lets You Open Your Home Remotely for Packages and People Are Wary

"What could go wrong?"

Amazon wants to make getting deliveries even easier. So easy, in fact, that you won't even have to bring them inside your home anymore. The tech company just announced Amazon Key, a smart lock and camera duo that allows you to open your door for anyone, especially couriers dropping off your purchase.

Available for Prime members only, the service is designed to "grant access to the people you trust, like your family, friends, dog walker, or house cleaner — no more leaving a key under the mat," according to the brand's announcement.

For those who think this sounds like a great idea, the first step is to purchase the Amazon Key In-Home Kit, which costs $249.99 and includes an indoor security camera and a compatible smart lock. The camera itself is compatible with Amazon Alexa and features night vision and two-way talk. Once set up, customers can select "in-home delivery" at checkout. Just before delivery, customers will get a notification, the courier will unlock your door via Amazon (the customer does not have to confirm at the time of dropoff, but does have the option of blocking access at any time), and the security camera will record a video for you to either watch live or record for later. The package will be placed "just within your door," so it doesn't seem as if Amazon is planning to allow free reign of your entire home, but that is certainly a possibility.

Amazon also says that in the coming months it will announce partnerships with companies like Merry Maids and Rover.com so that the Amazon Key access can be extended to anyone you'd like to let into your home without your presence, though it does not recommend the product if a pet is able to access the door.

Amazon is not the first company to experiment with in-home delivery. Walmart announced earlier this month that it plans to roll out a similar concept with a smart lock and video camera system to actually deliver groceries straight into a customer's refrigerator while they are not home.

But still, there have been lots of questions about security, privacy, and safety raised since the Amazon Key announcement. On Twitter, people joked that lots of pets will be set free, or sinister couriers might try to take advantage of the open access to a customer's home. And while Amazon Key would solve the problem of rain-soaked packages and stolen boxes, it could also be risky. At least it will avoid the problem of a misplaced package blocking the door and trapping you inside your own home.

Check out some reactions to Amazon Key and the official Amazon ad, below.